A new bill will allow a person to be tried and convicted of a criminal offence without seeing all the information relied on by the Crown and without the right to be present, the NZ Law Society says.

Lawyers at court hearing over VW
A court hearing in New Orleans will decide where multiple cases against Volkswagen relating to the emissions scandal will be heard. Lawyers from across the US descended on the courtroom Thursday in a bid to persuade a panel of judges of how the cases should be bundled and where they should be heard. There have been many lawsuits brought around the world and in the US alone there have been almost 500 lawsuits files in 70 jurisdictions. In Australia there has been a delay in the legal process and the next step will be a Case Management hearing on December 17.

New hire for Squire Patton Biggs in Sydney
The Sydney office of Squire Patton Biggs has boosted its insolvency and litigation capabilities with the hire of respected and experienced lawyer Sasha Ivantsoff as counsel. Previously a partner at Piper Alderman, he re-joins former colleague Amanda Banton who was appointed by the firm at the beginning of this year, along with a team of 11 restructuring, insolvency and litigation lawyers. The firm's Sydney team has grown by 50 per cent in the last 12 months.

Korea to keep bar exam
Plans to abolish the state-run bar exam in Korea have been scrapped, for now at least. The announcement from the Ministry of Justice on Thursday said that the exam was to end in 2017 but following a survey of 1,000 Koreans it had decided to keep it until 2021. The exam has been criticised for favouring those from elite backgrounds but it was felt that more time was needed to discuss the proposal to end it.

I’m a Celebrity…Call my lawyers!
Ten Network’s I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! may be set in South Africa but the original version for UK TV is currently happening right now in Murwillumbah, NSW, and has resulted in a threat of legal action. One of the contestants, Royal biographer Lady Colin Campbell, has left the show prematurely officially on medical grounds. However it’s reported in the UK’s Daily Star that she has threatened to call in her legal team to advise on alleged bullying by Spandau Ballet star Tony Hadley. His lawyers have responded to deny the claims calling them “pure fantasy”.